Coronary artery calcification scoring by prospectively triggered multidetector-row computed tomography: is it reproducible?

• Published in: Journal of computer assisted tomography Vol. 28; no. 1; p. 40
• Main Authors: Lawler, Leo P, Horton, Karen M, Scatarige, John C, Phelps, John, Thompson, Richard E, Choi, Leena, Fishman, Elliot K
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.01.2004
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Calcinosis - diagnostic imaging; Coronary Disease - diagnostic imaging; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Observer Variation; Reproducibility of Results; Tomography, X-Ray Computed - methods
• ISSN: 0363-8715
• DOI: 10.1097/00004728-200401000-00006

The objective of this study was to measure the interobserver and interscan variation of coronary artery calcium scores using multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT). Seventy-five patients underwent 2 sequential MDCT scans for coronary artery calcification. Each patient's score was separately measured by 3-blinded radiologists. Scores were treated as discrete and continuous data, and independent statistical analysis was performed on all results. There was a high proportion of interscan and inter-reader concordance for the presence of coronary calcium (range, 0.893-0.973) and for its quantity (range, 0.936-0.988). Overall, prospectively triggered multidetector-row calcium scoring is reproducible though there is more variation in those patients with already high scores. There is no need to scan patients twice at the same sitting.